Seattle
Seattle is a ruined city in the former State of Washington of the Northwest Commonwealth. It was used as a military staging area during the resource wars and the operation to retake Anchorage. Chinese missiles were aimed at Seattle during the Great War, due to it being the closest metropolitan area to China. All of Seattle lies in ruin, and is said to be haunted. Geography Seattle was situated on several hills and between two large bodies of water (Puget Sound to the west and Lake Washington to the east), meaning that it was spared the complete annihilation suffered by cities that lay on flat, open ground. However, the downtown area and the University of Washington, north of downtown across Lake Union, were covered in rubble, making passage through them impossible unless one traveled through the extensive network of tunnels below the city. Vaults A number of Vault-Tec installations were constructed in the greater Seattle area, with varying purposes. * Vault 20 was located in the Seattle Underground tunnels and received no food, weapons, or other supplies. * Vault 21 was the control Vault for the Northwest region and was located in the side of a hill in north Seattle. It opened after 30 years, in 2107, as it was designed to do, although many of the survivors were unprepared and died or became lost in the wasteland. * Vault 26 was located on Beacon Hill in south Seattle and inhabitated only by military personnel; designed to test the limits of military discipline. * An incomplete Vault was located on Mercer Island, east of the city; it never received a number. The door closed automatically when the bombs fell and the climate control system malfunctioned, sealing the construction workers inside. Settlements The downtown Seattle area remains abandoned due to high radiation levels and mutant infestation, but small settlements have grown up on the outskirts of the ruins. * Tahoma is the largest settlement, located on the eastern side of Capitol Hill. Its proximity to downtown results in regular attacks by feral ghouls and Super Mutants, but the inhabitants are able to fight off most threats with the aid of local mercenaries. The town survives on supplies scavenged from the area surrounding downtown. * Tongmeng is built in the remains of a Chinese cargo ship that managed to make port in Seattle after the bombs fell. Horrified by the devastation, the captain ordered his crew to welcome any survivors who made their way to the relative safety of the ship. Today the population is made up of the descendants of both the crew and the survivors. * Blackwood is a settlement in the northern Seattle area, originally founded by survivors from Vault 21, who settled there after the vault opened in 2107. Blackwood is now a fairly prosperous farming and trading town with a feudal government. * New Alki is a small wastelander settlement located in former West Seattle. The locals maintain an ancient radio tower here that broadcasts Radio Alki. The Haunting After the earth grew quiet, survivors moved into the ruins of Seattle to scavenge what they could, and scrape by an existence. According to legend, many settlers encountered cannibalistic humanoids, coming from the ruins. People were kidnapped, and no trace was ever found. All camps in the Metro area were abandoned. Settlements today avoid entering the metro area, reportedly saying they want to 'avoid the radiation'. The Underground Early in the city's history, the streets in the downtown area were raised to a higher level, but businesses located at the original street level refused to move, resulting in an underground city. This subterranean community eventually fell out of use by businesses, but the tunnels were expanded over the years to create a transportation network, including an electric trolley system. By the 2070s the network extended all the way north to the University of Washington, and was an integral part of the city. Many citizens fled to the Underground during the Great War, and the majority of 23rd century population is likely descended from the few survivors who took refuge in the tunnels. As the Brotherhood of Steel grew, a detachment was sent north, to scavenge Portland, Seattle, and British Columbia. The Brotherhood regiments that explored Seattle ignored the local villages' warnings not to enter the city ruins. When they entered the ruins, they found only radiation and death. Vault 20 was discovered with no resistance. The Scribes with the detachment re-activated and downloaded the main computer, where they discovered the vault experiment. The report concluded that the Vault Dwellers ate each other to extinction. See Also Brotherhood NWEF Holotapes Upper Valley Republic Nisqually Federation Parkland Category:Places